Preheat the oven to 350F. Lightly butter a baking tray.
Cream the butter and sugar together in a bowl with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Beat in the molasses.
Add to the mixture the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, cardamon, both gingers, clove, salt, and egg yolk. (To add a bit of heat, grind in a pinch or two of black pepper)
Beat in a couple of tablespoons of milk and then bring it all together to form a dough.
Roll the dough out on a floured surface to the thickness of a coin. Cut into your desired shapes.
Lay the cookies on the buttered baking tray and bake for 12-14 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on cooling rack. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Combine a tablespoon of powdered sugar and the juice of one lemon for a quick icing. Or you could sprinkle with powdered sugar, or try this sugar cookie icing. Ice with a pattern of your choosing.

I made ginger cookie butterflies for my sister (loves butterflies) and the memorial for her husband (ate a lot of ginger snaps).